2025
Markt Zeist
2025
Markt Zeist
In the center of Zeist, the Market is reimagined as a lively and green urban square that reconnects its surroundings and redefines its role as a place for meeting and culture.
Location
Zeist
Client
Gemeente Zeist
Surface Area
3.6 ha
The Market occupies a central position, yet today it lacks spatial clarity and quality of stay. The existing cultural center turns inward and limits connections with its surroundings, while the layout of streets and traffic fragments the area. Despite the presence of mature trees, the predominantly paved environment contributes to heat stress and an overall lack of comfort and identity.
The proposal addresses these challenges by demolition and reconstructionof the existing building and redefining the Market as an inviting and active square. The new House for Culture and Meetingreturns at a new position, bringing together a diverse public program and forming a strong spatial edge. This intervention creates a clear and legible urban structure: an open, green square that accommodates the weekly market, events, and everyday use, anchored by a contemporary cultural building. Together, they form a renewed center for Zeist.
The design organizes the area into a simple and robust spatial framework. A rectangular square is created, aligned with the Voorheuvel and defined by active edges. Positioning the building on the eastern side opens up direct pedestrian routes between Emmaplein and the Market, restoring continuity within the center. Traffic is streamlined into a one-way route along the edge, reducing its impact and allowing the square to function primarily as a pedestrian-oriented space.
Greenery plays a key role in shaping the atmosphere. Planting is concentrated along the north and south edges, where beds with perennials and trees create places to linger. Additional trees are carefully integrated into the square, coordinated with the market layout. Along the Voorheuvel, a continuous row of trees extends the existing structure, providing shade and improving the microclimate. These interventions create a space that feels both open and intimate, while contributing to climate resilience.
The square supports a wide range of uses throughout the day. Terraces along the eastern edge activate the public realm, while seating and informal gathering spaces are integrated within the planting and across the square. A consistent material palette of red fired brick ties the space together, building on the existing character of Zeist and giving the square a calm and durable expression.
The new House for Culture and Meeting forms the spatial and programmatic anchor of the plan. Positioned between Emmaplein and Weeshuislaan, it defines the eastern edge of the square and completes the urban ensemble. The building is composed of a transparent plinth with more compact volumes above, allowing it to respond to the different scales of its surroundings. Subtle variations in height create a balanced composition and articulate the building as two distinct yet connected volumes, giving it a clear identity within the renewed Market.
